NASA administrator: Mars mission an investment in research

The announced manned mission to Mars is not simply a flight of fancy, but an important investment in research, NASA's administrator said Thursday.

In a wide-ranging session at the weeklong Gartner Symposium/ITxpo at the Walt Disney World Dolphin, Sean O'Keefe also said throughout human history, there has been the desire to explore the unknown, to understand what we don't know and then build on what we learn from the experience.

And there can be much to be gained by doing so that can be applicable back here on Earth, O'Keefe said, noting that NASA has in the past been responsible for the development of such things as the technology for cataract surgery, the heart pump and reflector lights for cars.

NASA is currently working on solving why humans lose muscle and bone during long space flights, he said, adding if NASA can conquer that, it will have tremendous implications for people with osteoporosis.

Asked about the expense of a Mars mission, O'Keefe said the price to taxpayers would be the equivalent of one movie for a family of four.

The idea has generated so much interest, NASA's Web site has had 15 billion visitors since it was announced by President Bush 10 months ago, he said. As well, representatives of 25 nations will meet in Washington next month to collaborate on the project.

O'Keefe is also supportive of the current efforts by the private sector to commercialize space flight and the financial prizes being offered to do so.

"Fantastic, this is what we all hoped would emerge," he said. "Making it accessible to everyone, which is what we aspire to."

O'Keefe pointed out that there was a prize involved when Charles A. Lindbergh crossed the Atlantic and after he did so, it gave birth to "an entire industry."

O'Keefe also talked about the space shuttle Columbia disaster in February 2003 and how it was the "most searing day of my life."

He described how he was with the families of the seven astronauts at Kennedy Space Center awaiting the return of the shuttle when in the span of 10 minutes, the group went from "elation" at the prospect of the astronauts getting back safely to the realization they weren't coming back at all.

A lack of information-sharing contributed profoundly to the accident, he said.

Asked if the media overplayed the story, O'Keefe said the media behaved exactly the way he thought it would.

"Expect a journalist to lay off a story like that? I don't think so," he said.

However, O'Keefe added it is important to get as much information out as quickly as possible, no matter if it is good, bad or indifferent because then no one can be accused of hiding anything.

"It never gets better with age, and you can't spin that stuff," he said.

The next shuttle mission will come when NASA fulfills the 15 recommendations that came after the Columbia disaster, he said. O'Keefe said he expects a launch in the May/June time frame.